Warriors: Triumph and Chaos
by DarukaChai
Summary: "Kin of kin, born of the full moon, will bring forth triumph with chaos..." When Nettlekit and Thymekit are born on the night of the Gathering-the full moon-Sparkstar, leader of LightningClan, realizes they will eventually either save or ruin her Clan.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

A cat—a yellow tabby with amber eyes—stalked a plump mouse through the undergrowth. Just as she pounced, the leaves on a nearby bush rustled and the mouse darted away under a pile of bracken. She hissed in annoyance as her paws landed on the empty ground in front of her.

The bush rustled again and a pair of cats emerged, their pelts filled with stars. The larger of the two—a tom with white, gray, and black fur mixed with stars—spoke first.

"Sparkstar," he meowed to the yellow tabby, "There is trouble coming."

Wolfheart!" Sparkstar exclaimed, surprised.

Then she narrowed her yellow eyes and asked, "What kind of trouble?"

The second starry-furred cat—a pale yellow tabby she-cat—stepped forward.

"Kin of kin, born of the full moon, will bring forth triumph with chaos," she mewed.

The two cats started to fade, as Sparkstar pondered the she-cat's words. At this, Sparkstar leapt up from where she was sitting and bounded forward to stop the cats from leaving.

"Wolfheart, Heathercloud! Wait!" she meowed after them. But she was too late. She stopped where Wolfheart and Heathercloud had previously been standing—they were gone.

"What do you mean…." she whispered. But they could not hear her.

The forest was dark, but the full moon shone brightly in the star-filled, night sky. The air was filled with the chirping of crickets. But, from across a wall of leafy branches and bramble, the groans and shrill mews of a cat could be heard.

Inside the protective wall, there was a large clearing, the floor of which was covered in soft sand. A small pool of water was fitted in between two large dens, near the back of the clearing, and off to the side. Various other dens surrounded the clearing.

A black tom cat dashed across the clearing and into one of the dens. A second tom followed close behind him, but this one's coloring was pure white. Inside the den, a very pale brown she-cat struggled to give birth to her kits. Both cats rushed to her side.

"Stay back unless I need you, Whiteclaw," the black tom mewed to the white tom.

Whiteclaw hesitantly moved back, but kept his bright green eyes locked on the she-cat. The black tom turned to the small she-cat. She let out a loud groan.

"It's alright, Finchflight. You're doing great." He told her soothingly.

"Mintfrost," she gasped out, "I can't-"

"Yes, you can," Mintfrost interrupted her, "Now push."

So, Finchflight pushed. And finally, the first kit had arrived. The kit gasped its first breath and Whiteclaw leaned forward to gaze down at it in wonder.

"Lick him. Quickly, he needs warmth," Mintfrost mewed.

"A tom…." Whiteclaw breathed, and he started to lick his kit vigorously.

Soon after, the second kit arrived. After a few moments of licking the second kit, Mintfrost sat back and mewed, "There, you're done. You did wonderfully, Finchflight. You have two healthy kits."

He sat back and began to lick the other kit, purring as he did so. Finchflight lay there exhausted, but purring loudly, all the while.


	2. Chapter One

**Chapter 1**

The green-leaf sunlight shone through the leafy covering of a large den. A young kit blinked open his eyes and squinted as he looked straight up into a ray of sunlight. He couldn't have been any older than a moon. He rolled over to find himself gazing into the amber eyes of an older, full-grown cat.

"Good morning, Nettlekit," the pale brown cat mewed. Nettlekit jumped in surprise and rolled out of the nest. He jumped to his paws to see the cat staring at him, purring in amusement.

"Whoa! You scared me, Mom!" Nettlekit exclaimed. Nettlekit stared back, his eyes narrowed. But the she-cat only purred louder. Then he couldn't help it anymore and he burst out purring. He bound back into the nest, rolling over another kit that as he went.

"Hey, be careful, there. You'll wake Thymekit," the she-cat meowed.

"He already did," the other kit mewed sleepily. Thymekit playfully batted Nettlekit's ear, yawning at the same time. Nettlekit batted him back, and soon the kits were rolling across the floor of the den in a play-fight.

A white tom padded into the den and the two kits tumbled into him, taking him by surprise and knocking him off his paws. They immediately sat up and faced the cat they had knocked over.

Thymekit's eyes widened in recognition and he purred with happiness.

"Whiteclaw! What are you doing here!" he asked.

Whiteclaw lifted himself to his paws and stared down at the kits. He flicked his tail.

"Well, I _was_ coming to check up on my kits, but I can see that they're doing fine," he meowed twitching his whiskers. He padded over to the she-cat, who was still watching them from the nest.

"And, how've you been doing?" he asked her, swiping his tongue across her ear.

"I'm great," she replied, "You, on the other paw, look exhausted. Haven't you been getting any sleep?"

"Yes, but not much of it. I've been going on extra patrols lately. But, don't worry, Finchflight. I'll be okay," he mewed back, but just talking about it seemed to make him even more tired. Finchflight looked like she didn't believe him, but she left the matter alone. Suddenly Nettlekit spoke up.

" Can we go play in the clearing?" he asked. Finchflight looked over to him and flicked her tail in dismissal.

"Go ahead. But don't get in any cat's way," she meowed. They turned to leave when Whiteclaw called them back.

"Petalpaw wanted to show you around the camp. Why don't you go find her? She's probably at the fresh-kill pile, right now," he told them.

Nettlekit nodded and he and Thymekit bounded out into the clearing. They looked toward the fresh-kill pile for Petalpaw. She was there, just as Whiteclaw had said. They bounded over to her and she looked up from the vole she was eating. She finished the remainder of it in a few bites and then she leapt to her paws.

"So, are you ready for me to show you around?" she asked excitedly.

"Yes!" they exclaimed at the same time. Petalpaw purred in amusement and turn towards the back end of the clearing, where a huge rock jutted out over the sandy floor of the clearing. A pile of rocks lead up to it, so that a cat could climb up on top. An open on the top of the rock led into what looked like a large cave. Nettlekit stared up at it on wonder. He'd never really bothered to look around the camp before. When he actually went out into the clearing, he was usually play-fighting with Thymekit, so he never really paid attention to his surroundings.

"That's Jutting Rock. Sparkstar calls all of the Clan meetings from up there. And that cave on top of it is Sparkstar's den. You shouldn't go up there unless she calls for you," Petalpaw explained. She then led them towards a large den surrounded by ferns and long grass.

Vines of ivy were draped over the entrance of the den and a pool of water lay off to the side of it. Nettlekit already knew that that was the Drinking Pool, where cats went for a drink of water when they were thirsty.

"That's Mintfrost's den. He's the medicine cat. Sick or injured cats go there to heal and get better. My sister, Flowerpaw, is training to be a medicine cat, too," Petalpaw meowed.

They continued on past the Drinking Pool and stopped at the entrance to another large den, but this one was even bigger than the medicine cat's den. It seemed to be about the same size as the nursery and it was protected by walls of bramble.

"This is the warriors den. When you two become apprentices, Finchflight will be sleeping in there, again. And when I become a warrior, I'll be sleeping in there, too," she announced proudly.

As they walked by a wall of leafy branches and bramble, Petalpaw told them that it was the entrance to the camp. Across from the warriors' den was the apprentices' den, where all of the apprentices slept. Next to the apprentices' den was the elders' den, and next to that was the nursery.

"That path between the nursery and the elders' den leads to the Training Hollow," Petalpaw went on, "That's where all the apprentices training to be warriors go to master their battle skills. And of course you already know where the nursery is. You already know where the Drinking Pool and the fresh-kill pile are, too, so I don't need to show those, either. So, that's The LightningClan camp! Isn't it great!"

"Yeah! It's really…really cool…" Thymekit meowed, ending with a great big yawn.

"Well, someone's tired," Whiteclaw meowed from behind Petalpaw. Nettlekit looked up at his father with his eyes drooping.

"We're not...tired..." he protested.

"Yes, you are," the white tom replied, purring, "Let's get you two back to the nursery. Come on."

"But, we're not tired," Nettlekit repeated, yawning. But he let his father lead him and his brother back to the nursery.

As soon as he reached his nest, he lay down and shut his eyes, and he quickly drifted off to sleep.


	3. Chapter Two

**Chapter 2**

When Thymekit awoke, he found that Finchflight and Nettlekit were still sleeping, so he let them be. He glanced around the nursery, and saw Moonpelt lying in her nest, fast asleep. Moonpelt was expecting kits very soon-her belly was swollen. Mintfrost and Flowerpaw must have moved her into the nursery after him and Nettlekit had fallen asleep the night before.

Thymekit padded out of the den to see Silverfur, Sunstep, and Mistwind returning from the dawn patrol. Sunstep and Mistwind padded over to the fresh-kill pile, while Silverfur leaped up the pile of rocks leading up to Jutting Rock and Sparkstar's den. The LightningClan deputy called for his leader once he got to the top. After a moment's pause he darted inside. Thymekit tilted his head to the side, wondering why Silverfur had seemed so anxious to get to Sparktar's den so quickly. He glanced over to Sunstep and Mistwind, and both warriors had troubled looks on their faces.

"What's got them so worried?"

Thymekit jumped at the voice behind him. He spun around to see Nettlekit staring at him with an amused look in his eyes.

"Hey! Don't _do_ that!" Thymekit exclaimed. Nettle kit just flicked his ears and padded up next to Thymekit, sitting with his tail wrapped around his paws.

"Sorry," he mewed, "Anyway, what's going on?"

Thymekit turned to face the leader's den. "I don't know," he answered, "Silverfur was in a real hurry to speak to Sparkstar, but I don't know why."

Nettlekit suddenly glanced at him, with a mysterious look in his green eyes.

"Uh-oh."

Thymekit could tell what was coming next. His brother was getting another one of his ideas that was sure to get them into trouble.

"Why don't we go find out? We can hide just inside the cave and listen in!" he mewed quietly. Thymekit was right. _I knew it!_ he thought

"No! We're not supposed to go up there, remember! Petalpaw said we weren't allowed up there unless Sparkstar called for us! We'll get in trouble," Thymekit tried to reason. But it was no use.

"We won't get in trouble if they don't know we're there. No one's looking, c'mon!" Nettlekit raced for the pile of rocks, but turned around when he saw that his brother wasn't following. He beckoned with his tail and Thymekit gave in. He dashed to Nettlekit, shaking his head on the way.

"This is a bad idea…" he whispered to himself.

They struggled up the rocks and managed to reach the top. They crawled along on their bellies, so no cat would see them if they decided to look up, and finally reached Sparkstar's den. Voices could be heard from inside.

"…they've been stealing prey from us for almost a moon. We _have_ to act," the voice was Silverfur's.

"What! Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Sparkstar was the one who spoke this time. Her voice was sharp with frustration. She waited for an answer from Silverfur, but he gave none. Sparkstar sighed and when she spoke her voice was softer. "Listen to me, Silverfur. I know that you consider Minnowstream as a very good friend….but your apprentice days are over. You are my deputy, now. You need to let her go. I know you don't want to risk losing what still have. And what you will have soon."

"No! I don't…. I...I understand what you're saying." Silverfur's voice sounded weak and pained. Thymekit had never heard the Lightning Clan deputy like this—he always sounded strong and confident, but now….

"Good. Now, I'm sending you and Whiteclaw to the EarthClan camp. I want you to tell them—"

Just then Nettlekit shifted where he was sitting. His hind paw hit a small rock and it skidded over the edge of Jutting Rock. It dropped to the rocks below with a clatter. Sparkstar stopped and suddenly Silverfur was at the mouth of the den looming over the two kits. His eyes narrowed in anger.

"Get them in here."

Silverfur lashed his tail angrily and nudged them inside. Sparkstar sat in her nest and stared down at them. She closed her eyes and shook her head.

"I told you this would happen…." Thymekit hissed quietly at his brother. But not quietly enough. Sparkstar's amber eyes snapped open and she turned to Thymekit.

"What did you tell him would happen?" she asked.

"I…um…" he stuttered.

"Go on. Speak!" Silverfur hissed behind him.

"Silverfur," Sparkstar warned. He sat back and closed his eyes, trying to calm himself. But Thymekit could tell that he was still furious.

Thymekit turned to the LightningClan leader, who was still patiently waiting for an answer. He hesitated for a moment and then spoke, "I…I told him we would get caught. I knew we shouldn't have come up here…." His last sentence was directed more at himself than at his leader, but she seemed to think about it.

"….How much did you two hear?" she asked after a moment's pause. Thymekit opened his jaws to answer but Sparkstar interrupted him, "I'd like to hear it from Nettlekit."

Nettlekit's eyes widened and he gulped. "I, um…I…." he stuttered.

"I'm waiting."

Nettlekit glanced behind him at Silverfur, but quickly snapped his head back to face his leader when he saw how the LightningClan Deputy was glaring at him and his brother. He swallowed once more and meowed, "The first thing we heard was that another Clan's been stealing prey. And then everything after that." He looked up at Sparkstar, hoping that that was all she needed to hear from him. When she didn't say anything he continued, "We heard...about Minnowstream. About her and...Silverfur being good friends, I mean."

Silverfur snarled behind them.

"That's it," Nettlekit finished. Sparkstar was silent for a few moments.

"Do not tell any cat what you heard, just now. _Any_ of what you heard. And tell no one you were up here. Understand?" she meowed. Both kits nodded vigorously. "Good." She turned to Silverfur.

"Now. You and Whiteclaw had better get going. Tell Mudstar that he's been being given a warning and that if we scent EarthClan over our borders again, we _will_ use force. Oh, and have Whiteclaw bring Petalpaw with you… I shall escort these kits back to their mother." She flicked her tail in dismissal and Silverfur quickly padded outside.

Once the Lightningclan deputy had left, Sparkstar turned back to the kits. "Now, it's about time I got you two back to the nursery."

After returning to the nursery, Sparkstar had ordered Finchflight to keep a close eye on her kits and quickly left.

"This isn't fair…" Nettlekit grumbled, settling down into the nest. It had been a quarter moon since he and his littermate had snuck up to Sparkstar's den.

"Well, you're the one who dragged us into it," Thymekit replied. Nettelkit didn't say anything; he only glared his brother for a few moments, and then closed his eyes.

Suddenly, there was a loud yowl from Moonpelt from across the nursery. Thymekit's eyes opened wide with surprise. Next to him, Nettlekit's eyes flew open and his head snapped up. Finchflight, who had been just outside the nursery dashed in at the sound. She stopped beside Moonpelt and crouched over her.

"Moonpelt, what is it? Your kits?" she meowed.

Moonpelt's answer came out in a gasp, "Y-yes!" Finchflight nodded and turned to her kits, who were staring in awe at Moonpelt as a spasm went through her belly.

"Nettlekit!" he jumped at the sudden change of tone in her usually soft, gentle voice, "You know where Mintfrost's den is, right? Fetch him and tell him that Moonpelt's kits are coming."

"R-right!" the young tom stammered and he scrambled out of the nursery.

Finchflight turned to Thymekit, "Bring Silverfur here, now!"

Without bothering to respond, Thymekit rushed out of the nursery and skidded to a halt. Which den was the warriors den! He couldn't remember! _Calm down_, he told himself, _Think!_

Closing his eyes, he thought back to the other day—when Petalpaw had shown him and Nettlekit around the camp—and tried to remember. Suddenly he pictured the huge den surrounded by brambles. _This is the warriors den._ _When you two become apprentices, Finchflight will be sleeping in there, again_, he could hear Petalpaw saying, remembering it from when she had shown the den to him and his brother. His eyes snapped open and he immediately shot off in the direction of the warriors' den.

It seemed even bigger from the inside. All along the edge of the den, there were nests lined with moss and dried bracken. Only a few of them were occupied at the moment. Mapletail and Grasswillow lay sleeping in the two nests farthest from the entrance, and Silverfur lay a few nests away, closer to the center, washing his paws. He looked up when Thymekit entered the den and narrowed his eyes.

"Weren't you supposed to stay in the nursery?" he hissed, "What do you want?"

"….Moonpelt….kits…." Thymekit gasped. Silverfur's eyes widened and he shot out of the den, with Thymekit hurrying behind him.

When they reached the nursery, Mintfrost and his apprentice, Flowerpaw where already leaning over the gasping queen. Silverfur dashed over and pushed his way in between them. Moonpelt, who had been gasping in the struggle to give birth to her kits, opened her eyes and looked up at her mate.

"Silv—"she began, but another spasm wracked through her belly, cutting her off. Mintfrost shouldered the LightningClan deputy away and placed a paw on the gasping queen's belly.

"Stay back, Silverfur. You'll only be in the way," the medicine cat meowed, "Flowerpaw, place your paw here." Flowerpaw stepped forward and placed her paw on Moonpelt's belly next to her mentor's. Her eyes widened.

"The first one is coming," Mintfrost announced. And sure enough a tiny kit slithered out onto the soft, bracken-covered floor of the nursery. "Nip the sac so she can breathe," the black tom directed and Flowerpaw obeyed. A few moments later, a second kit slid out onto the ground of the nursery, just as her brother had. Moonpelt's spasms slowly ceased and she lay still except for the gentle rise and fall of her chest as she breathed.

Flowerpaw carried the first kit over to Mintfrost, then the second. The medicine cat and his apprentice lay with their pelts brushing, licking the kits gently. Once they were finished, Mintfrost gently nudged both kits towards Moonpelt and stepped aside to let Silverfur through.

"A she-cat and a tom," he mewed softly. Silverfur looked up from his two kits and his mate.

"Are they all there is?" he asked.

"Yes," he answered and then turned to Flowerpaw. "You did well. I'm very proud of you," he praised her, swiping his tongue across her ear.

He padded to Moonpelt's side and whispered in her ear, "I proud of you, too."

Nettlekit, who had been sitting just inside the entrance to the nursery with Thymekit and Finchflight, suddenly spoke up, "Why is Mintfrost so happy? I mean he's probably done this plenty of times before, hasn't he?" He looked up at Finchflight, "Was he this happy when we were born?"

"Well, not _quite_ as happy," Finchflight purred, "But Moonpelt and Mintfrost are littermates. That's why.

"Oh," Nettlekit mewed, turning back to look where Moonpelt lay with her kits gently nuzzling her belly.

Finchflight got to her paws and nudged her kit towards their nest, "Come on, time for a wash. You're first, Thymekit."

"Aww!"


End file.
